Barbara Windsor's widower reveals EastEnders legend would have loved new Alzheimer Scotland outdoor facility
ALZHEIMER Scotland yesterday launched its second outdoor dementia centre with the help of Dame Barbara Windsor's widower Scott Mitchell.
Agent Scott was married to the Carry On and EastEnders legend for 20 years before her death in 2020 aged 83 from Alzheimer's Disease, becoming her full-time carer for the last six years of her life.
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Scott Mitchell visiting Alzheimer Scotland's new outdoor dementia centre in Edinburgh.
Credit: Andy Barr
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Gillian Councill, Alzheimer Scotland's Executive Lead for Brain Health and Innovation.
Credit: Andy Barr
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Part of the new centre.
Credit: Andy Barr
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Memory aides including a bus stop and a phonebox.
Credit: Andy Barr
The new facility on the grounds of Lauriston Castle, Edinburgh, comes after the success of the charity's first outdoor dementia resource centre which was opened in the Cairngorm National Park in 2023.
During Dementia Awareness Week, Chief Features Writer MATT BENDORIS speaks to Scott about caring for Barbara and how the centre can help people with Alzheimer's and their families.
SCOTT Mitchell strolls through the garden of the new outdoor dementia centre, with its traditional red phone box and bus stop added as memory aides, and declares: 'Barbara would have loved this.'
The London-based agent was in Edinburgh to help launch the Alzheimer Scotland facility in Edinburgh and wished he and his late wife had had a 'calming' outdoor space like this after the actress, who played Albert Square's Peggy Mitchell, was diagnosed with the disease in 2014.
He said: 'When I walked in I just sensed the calm that was here. That resonated with me as I thought 'if only we would have had somewhere like this when I was caring for Barbara'.
'Because I tell you, when you're caring for someone, going out can be quite a stressful thing. But somewhere like here everyone else understands what was happening with your loved one as they're going through it too.
'And also just being outdoors. I mean, look around you, we're in the middle of nature here. You've also got the phone box and the bus stop and lots of other things that will evoke memories.
'That's important for people living with the diagnosis as usually their memories are from a way back.'
The dementia friendly centre will provide a range of activities, including gardening and horticulture, relaxation and yoga, community cafes and green health programmes.
Scott said: 'I truly believe Alzheimer's Scotland are leading the way when it comes to dementia care as they also think of the carers as well as the people living with the disease.
'People forget that the carer's life becomes very isolated too as you're constantly focusing on that other person because you have to.
'What happens is friends can drop away and people stop popping round so your own world becomes very small.
'We have to watch their mental health too and ways to give them a little break so a place like this is perfect for that.'
Gillian Councill, Alzheimer Scotland's Executive Lead for Brain Health and Innovation, reveals it's estimated that 90,000 people are currently living in Scotland with dementia.
She said 'Sadly that figure is predicted to increase as the years go on. But one key area we're working on is prevention.
'There's lots of evidence coming through now that up to 45 per cent of cases of dementia could be preventable through addressing key lifestyle factors like air pollution, smoking, alcohol intake, education, vision and hearing loss.
'But increased physical activity is essential too, which is why green spaces are so important, including for your mental health.'
And Scott, 62, can still vividly recall the day he and Barbara received her devastating diagnosis.
He said: 'The day we got the diagnosis was the day I started grieving. That's how I felt.
'As it progresses it starts to take away your loved one, piece by piece, and you're grieving the whole time because you can see them disappearing in front of you.
'But I was also told that there'll always be a little piece of her in there somewhere, which was true.'
And Scott - who was Barbara's partner for 27 years - reveals that the Carry On star never lost her sense of humour.
He said: 'There was a lovely moment in the care home where unfortunately she wouldn't eat. And I said to her, I said, 'Barbara they've got chicken Milanese, that's what I make for you at home.'
FORMER NURSE ANN SAYS NEW OUTDOOR CENTRE IS A LIFELINE
FORMER nurse Ann Fraser insists Alzheimer's Scotland has thrown her a lifeline since being diagnosed with early onset dementia two years ago.
Mum of two Ann, 64, from Edinburgh, had still been employed as an auxiliary when she started forgetting things at work.
She said: 'People thought I was going deaf and I even got hearing aids. Then my GP sent me for scans and it showed then I had some form of dementia.
'But the support groups at Alzheimer's Scotland have been wonderful. Some days we'll have a song, or a dance and other times just give each other a hug.
'They have changed my life totally and this new centre is going to be amazing because it means that family and friends can come along too.'
'She said to me, 'Well you can't cook'. I said, 'Barbara, I'm the one who's done the cooking for 27 years and you're only telling me now' and she replied, 'Well I didn't want to hurt your feelings'.'
He adds: 'Another lovely moment was I was training for a marathon and was warming up inside with some stretches and she said 'What are you doing?'
'I told her 'I'm training to run a marathon' and she replied, 'Your legs are too little to run.' This was classic Barbara Windsor.'
There are currently around 130 clinical trials for drugs to try and slow down the progression of the disease.
And Scott firmly believes that there will be hope for dementia patients and their carers in the future.
He says: 'We are at a turning point here as far as dementia treatments are concerned.
'With more investment and funding then one day maybe we can slow it down considerably to the point where people won't have to go through all the distressing symptoms Barbara and millions of others have gone through.'
*For more information visit: alzscot.org
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